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“You’d be safe. If you marry me, Brad Coventry couldn’t hurt you. Shit, he wouldn’t even be able to find you if you don’t want him to. You’d have me and the club at your back.”
At the mention of safety, Violet’s eyes sparkle with hope. Which is great because the more this idea settles in my head, the more it starts to take root in my heart.
I want to marry Violet. No, Ineedto marry her.
Desperately. Inexplicably.
I can save her.
“C’mon, Sprite, whaddya say? Will you marry me and let me take care of you?”
“But why?”
“I told you why. Isn’t your life worth it?”
“Marriage is forever, Grim.” She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. “I told you, until death do us part means something to me. Marrying you would be…”
“Would be what?”
“Well, it wouldn’t be forever.” She wrinkles her forehead. “Would it?”
That’s a helluva question. It’s not like I’ve given this idea a lot of thought, and I definitely haven’t thought about anything beyond the immediate solution of Violet having the full weight of the club behind her if she’s my ol’ lady.
“It can be whatever you want it to be.” Maybe giving her some control over this will help. “If you want it to be a marriage in name only, okay. If you want it to be the real deal, that’s okay, too. And if you want to be tied to me until death do us part, I’m in.”
I’m nothing if not flexible.
Violet appears to consider my offer. She rises from the bench and begins to pace, numerous emotions playing out in her expression: fear, hope, sadness, determination. It’s all there on display for me to witness.
Fuck, she’s beautiful. A man could do far worse. Hell, a man couldn’t possibly do better.
I could continue to argue my case, but I don’t. Most look at me and see the muscle, the long hair, and the tattoos and make a snap judgment that I’m dumb. But they’re wrong. And I may not be the brother with the most luck with the ladies, but I witnessed enough shit in my young life to know whatnotto do.
Making a woman feel like she doesn’t have a choice is certainly something not to do.
After several minutes, Violet comes to a stop in front of me. She’s wringing her hands, and her eyes are focused everywhere but on me.
“Okay.”
Wait… what?
I shoot to my feet and grip her shoulders, certain I read her lips wrong. When she finally locks her gaze on mine, I know I wasn’t mistaken.
“Say it again.”
Her chest rises with a deep breath. “Okay, I’ll marry you.”
“You will?”
She nods. “I can’t explain it, but I feel safe with you. After everything I’ve been through, I’m realizing that feeling safe is just as important as love. Maybe, in time, we’ll learn to love each other. And if not, at least I’ll be alive.”
Unable to contain myself, I lift Violet into my arms and spin her around, careful of her broken ribs. I can’t hear it, but I can feel the vibrations in her chest as she laughs. After a few seconds, she hugs me back, wrapping her arms around my neck. I carry her over to the sink and set her on her feet.
“There’s just one thing I have to do, and then we’ll head to Vegas.”
She eyes me skeptically. “Vegas?”
“I know it’s not ideal, but it’s fast. We can have a real wedding later if that’s what you want. I’ll give you whatever makes you happy.” Suddenly shy, I let my hair fall over my face, concealing myself from her view. “This might not be the marriage you always dreamed of, but I’ll do everything in my power to make sure you don’t regret it.”
